Absurdity in Palo Alto: What's Next, Tom?

It's been over 24 hours since the Georgia Bigfoot press conference and I have had time to read the transcript and make notes. As well, I've been reading many emails, comments and opinions from people, novice and expert, worldwide. After all of this, I'm still left wondering "...what the hell was that?"

I guess the biggest question is why would the two men, Matt Whitton and Rick Dyer, who said they found the body continue to perpetuate a fraud unless they are utterly clueless of the consequences. Was it done for money? Fame? Marketing of a website? Matt Whitton, who is a police officer, has placed his credibility and job on the line. Then Bigfoot hunter Tom Biscotti becomes part of the mix and adds to the confusion that surrounds the Georgia carcass because of a 2005 claim he made on a national radio show (Coast to Coast) about finding another Bigfoot body that turned out to be untrue. During the press conference, Biscardi said “"Do you think these fellows would come this far and put their reputations and their jobs on the line, if they didn't have what they say they have?" After the presentation was over, that statement seemed to be the only evidence the three men had.

Well known cryptozoologist Loren Coleman noted, "Biscardi is a Las Vegas promoter and a showman, and he's doing it again. That's what he's really good at. It's like, 'Would you like to come into my tent? I'll show you this one picture. Isn't that interesting? Pay me to see more. "He's already gone through several hoaxes," Coleman said. "We always say, 'This is the end of Biscardi. He's never coming back.' I mean, the man has nine lives." Coleman states that Whitton and Dyer may have actually discovered something and were suckered in by the experienced scam artist. He also thinks it's possible they were running a scam initially, promoting their web site with videos and hoping to sell T-shirts and ball caps, when Biscardi came in and escalated the enterprise.

The West Coast based Bigfoot Field Research Organization has also stated that the Bigfoot corpse is a fabrication and classifies Tom Biscardi as a “sleazy vulture” and "the purpose of this grand ruse is to attract lots of attention to himself…to hold the attention of the mass media while he arranges various deals for documentaries, books, etc." The BFRO states that there have been over sixty documented sightings of Bigfoot in Georgia, but issued a warning calling the discovery of the body a “hoax” designed to help advertise Whitton and Dyer’s Bigfoot website and expeditions venture.

John Murphy, a partner in a movie costume company, was quoted in an internet blog stating, “I don’t know much about this thing. I would have to see it in person to make a proper determination. It looks like a poor quality gorilla costume to me. I have gorilla heads in stock that look exactly like the one in the photo. We rent those to projects that need for an actor to look like someone in a costume, not the real thing.” Anthropology and Anatomy Professor Jeffrey Meldrum of Idaho State University told the Discovery Channel that the creature in the photos presented by Whitton and Dyer did not look "natural" but instead appeared to be a gorilla costume widely available for purchase. This seems to be a general consensus from many of the comments I have received.

At one point in the press conference, either Whitton or Dyer said that they chose Biscardi because "he's the first name that comes up when you type in the word 'bigfoot.'" I went to Google and tried myself….Biscardi doesn't come up on the first page. The first reference is the BFRO. Maybe Biscardi, as suggested by some BFRO thread posters, was in on this fairy tale much sooner than stated.

I have tried to keep an open mind since this fiasco started with the YouTube videos and childish grandstanding, hoping the two bubbas from Forest Park, Georgia may have actually had luck shine on them. But honestly, something stinks and it’s not a Bigfoot corpse in a freezer at an undisclosed location.

Georgia Bigfoot Body Tom Biscardi
Georgia Bigfoot Body Tom Biscardi

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